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Tag: PDP

  • Borno PDP stakeholders oppose substitution of Lawan’s name

    Concerned elders and stakeholders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Borno State have kicked against the substitution of Alhaji Gambo Lawan as the party’s governorship candidate in the 2015 election.

    Lawan, a former Chairman of the Grassroots Democratic Movement (GDM) and ex-Chairman of Maiduguri Metropolitan Council, won the party’s governorship ticket at a primary in Abuja supervised by President Goodluck Jonathan.

    This followed the President’s intervention to resolve the lingering disagreement over the party’s governorship ticket in the state.

    The former GDM chairman and founding leader of the PDP in the state was affirmed by the party’s delegates and a Certificate of Return was issued to him after the election.

    In attendance during the primary were: Vice President Namadi Sambo, Senate President David Mark, PDP National Chairman Adamu Mu’azu, PDP’s Chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT) Chief Tony Anenih, Borno State PDP Chairman, Minister of State for Power Muhammed Wakil, BOT members and other stakeholders from the state.

    But on the eve of the submission of all the parties’ governorship flag bearers to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Lawan’s name was substituted by the PDP National Chairman with that of Mohammed Imam, a nominee of Senator Ali Modu Sheriff.

    In an open letter to President Jonathan on December 26, the PDP stakeholders called for a reversal of the substitution in the interest of justice and fair play.

    The petition was signed by Aminu Yakudima, Ibrahim Abatcha and Salisu Aliyu.

    On the process that produced Lawan, they said: “The process and composition of the people present is first of its kind in the history of our great party, which Your Excellency described as the Supreme Court of the party whose decision is final. You may wish to recall further that Lawan, having emerged from the old PDP as the candidate, you directed the new entrants to the party to nominate the candidate for the deputy governor.

    “It is disheartening to note that 14 days after the nomination and affirmation of Lawan as the candidate, he was wrongly and illegally substituted with Imam on the eve of the closure for the submission of the governorship nominees to INEC.

    “We want to believe that Your Excellency is unaware of this ugly and sad development, particularly in a nomination process of this magnitude that was conducted by the highest office of the federation. In this regard and in the best interest of the party, we call for the immediate reversal of the decision to substitute Lawan.

  • PDP, APC and abusive election

    PDP, APC and abusive election

    “Never was ability so much below mediocrity so well rewarded, not, not even when Caligula’s horse was made a consul,” said John Randolph on Richard Rush in the early days of the United States Congress. He could very well have been talking about President Goodluck Jonathan. But since the All Progressives Congress (APC) has sworn not to focus on the person of Dr Jonathan, though his person could not be divorced from his modest accomplishments, we may be deprived of great invectives directed against the president. Indeed, insults have from time immemorial been an integral part of politics, and memorable putdowns have served to excite, engage and humour the electorate. As an influence on voting pattern, however, their utility is doubtful. Nonetheless, in 2015, Nigeria seems nostalgically to be returning to the virulent past, a past that never really left us.

    In more than four statements in the past three weeks, the APC has wisely decided its presidential campaign will centre on issues instead of abuse, on facts rather than fiction, and on perspectives rather than persons. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on the other hand has cleverly impressed it on everyone, including party leaders and unwary voters, that its campaign will focus almost exclusively on vitriolic abuse. The reason is clear: on the exigent issues of the day, the PDP is at its wit’s end, unable to offer explanations for its failures and incapable of envisioning a glorious future. The ruling party will therefore do its damnedest to restrict the campaign to abuse and its focus to persons. If the APC is smart, it will recognise it is unlikely to match the PDP in abuse, and must therefore do its level best to stick to issues, where it will be able to prove with little or no effort how woefully the ruling party had performed, and how inept it had become in remedying the grave issues of the day and the mortal dangers of the near future.

    It is often hard to detach abuse from politics, especially because it constitutes an irresistible part of the dialectics of political campaign. But never in the history of Nigeria has any government proved so derelict of achievements as the President Goodluck Jonathan government, consequent upon which it seems unrepentantly set on avoiding campaigning on records. Indeed, it has already kick-started the campaign of abuse, and is pursuing it unabashedly and with all ferocity. In the past two weeks, two top officials of the PDP have dredged the sewers of abuse so openly it is unmistakable what their objectives are. National chairman of the PDP, Adamu Muazu, drew the first blood when, through his assistant, he described the APC candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, as idiosyncratically combative and anti-democratic, traits he concluded would be introduced into APC governance should the opposition party win the presidential election in 2015. It was scaremongering at its worst, but strictly speaking, since it was not libellous, Alhaji Muazu felt confident to make his opinion public.

    If Alhaji Muazu’s misplaced description of Gen Buhari as a warlord was not bad enough, the ruling party’s national secretary, Prof Adewale Oladipo, descended a notch lower by describing the APC presidential candidate as semiliterate, a reference to the fact that he has no university degree. Dr Jonathan on the other hand had a PhD, said the PDP official, irrespective of what he had done, or is capable of doing, with it. The 2015 presidential poll, Prof Oladipo gloated, “is going to be between darkness and light, it is going to be between a cosmopolitan, highly focused PhD holder and a semiliterate jackboot.” The problem with invectives is that they don’t have to bear any semblance to truth or reality. If not, there is hardly any Nigerian who does not know that Gen Buhari exudes gravitas as opposed to Dr Jonathan’s boyish simplicity, honesty as opposed to the president’s manifest and offensive untruths, forthrightness as opposed to the president’s prevarications, energy as opposed to the president’s lassitude, and cultured outlook as opposed to the president’s provocative provincialism.

    Even if we cavil at the PDP’s style of campaign, the party seems to have little or no alternative. There are no spectacular roads rebuilt on a significant scale to flaunt, and no rail network of high-speed trains to boast of. The PDP government has established more universities, but that is not what Nigeria needs, for the government is unable to maintain the existing ones. The hospitals are a little better than consulting clinics, and whole communities and long stretches of roads are unsafe. Kidnappers run riot, abducted schoolgirls are raped and killed, and schoolboys are massacred at will. The government has become so impotent that it seems there is no government in law and in fact.

    To avoid emphasis on these embarrassing facts, the PDP will focus attention on the persons of the APC leadership and candidates. If they are tired of focusing on Gen Buhari, and cannot focus on his running mate, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, they will seize some of the party’s national leaders, especially Bola Ahmed Tinubu, their favourite customer, to denigrate. In short, no matter what anyone says, and no matter what the APC does, the PDP will stubbornly remain glued to a campaign of calumny because of its tantalising opportunities. That is its lifeline; that is its last straw to clutch at. That is the engine of its presidential campaign; that in fact is the culmination of its 2015 campaign. It can do no other thing.

    The electorate will be left to judge in the final analysis who has run the most effective campaign between the PDP and APC, and which is the most persuasive, campaign of issues or campaign of abuse. The voters will be left to judge whether describing Gen Buhari as semiliterate resonates as powerfully as portraying the impotence of Dr Jonathan in rescuing the 219 schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram; or whether labelling the general a warlord is not a compliment in the face of Dr Jonathan’s proven failure in taking the battle to the rampaging Boko Haram, a terror group that has caused so much catastrophe in the country and schism, disquiet and restiveness in the Nigerian military.

  • Prof Bolaji Akinyemi Vs PDP’s history of electoral apostasy

    Prof Bolaji Akinyemi Vs PDP’s history of electoral apostasy

    One would not but wonder what facilities the professor thinks the opposition has to start a crisis knowing how unencumbered the Nigeria police and other security agencies are in turning their offensive weapons on its members

    Since I can, with considerable justification, claim some close affinity with Professor Bolaji Akinyemi who I had actually celebrated on this very page before – see TWO OF A KIND – Sunday, April 29, 2012 – this article should qualify as the archetypical Yoruba’s ‘oro to so sini lenu to bu’yo si -words that foul up the mouth but simultaneously sweetened it by adding salt  because  I ordinarily should not be seen controverting Professor Akinyemi on a public forum like this. Unfortunately, these are not ordinary times.  Our last  mutual engagement, together with some distinguished Yoruba icons, was the  effort , not only  to position the Southwest  appropriately within the Nigerian mix but, in particular, to birth a Socio-Cultural Pan-Yoruba Organisation where all Yoruba, irrespective of  political party affiliation, can sit amicably together to collectively interrogate  the way forward for the Yoruba  nation’. The story of AGBAJO YORUBA AGBAYE, under the distinguished interim Chairmanship of Lt. Gen. Alani Akinrinade, but which was mummified by then Southwest PDP governors during those days of the locust, is for another day.

    In our own respective corners, however seemingly significant or insignificant, we make history every day. So not many are likely to forget  Professor  Bolaji  Akinyemi in a hurry having served, not only as Director-General, Nigerian Institute of International Affairs,  but also as the country’s Foreign Affairs Minister during, arguably, the most winsome period in the history of our external affairs relations as a country. To that period must be credited his worthy attempt to establish a CONCERT OF MEDIUM POWERS. I would not know now, if he still considers that as his greatest achievement in public service given his recent, more than seminal role, in the National Conference which the president recently confessed was a ‘Yoruba’ initiative.

    He  recently wrote a letter to  both President Goodluck Jonathan and General  Muhammadu Buhari which, in my view was either  misplaced, or failed to lay emphasis on the appropriate thus indicating that he failed to reflect  deeply on the ill-consequences of  his  1993 letter  to  General  Abacha, also at a time of considerable anxiety in the country. In the letter, he  suggested  that the two presidential candidates  of Nigeria’s two foremost political parties should  sign a Memorandum of Undertaking to have peaceful campaigns as well as having their supporters ACCEPT WHATEVER THE RESULT(caps mine) of the 2015 presidential election. Not a few see this suggestion as anything other than offering a carte blanche to a rig-prone party like the PDP  to rig the 2015 election to its heart’s content  since such an understanding would have completely tied  APC’s ‘hands’ behind its back. Recent elections during which President Jonathan turned the concerned states into virtual garrisons with all manner of ‘security operatives’, some of them masked, and who in turn manacled the opposition, more than justify this conclusion. It could only be a shame that many believe that Professor Akinyemi is probably only the messenger here, given his well known capacity for original thinking, and that he most probably knows more than he volunteers given his well known chummy relationship with the government.

    For instance, in a text message  to me a few hours after his WAY FORWARD went public, a literally infuriated Olumide Ayeni, PhD, a top class legal practitioner and celebrated Omoluabi, not given to easily  losing his cool, shot it down writing as follows: ” Good evening uncle and seasons compliments Sir. I thought Professor Bolaji Akinyemi is supposed to be an eminent political scientist and statesman.  Why is he preaching to the converted and playing the ostrich?  If he is to be taken seriously, let him stand up to the truth as there can be no violence next year if the elections are free, fair and transparent.  JFK it was, he wrote, who once said that ‘those who make peaceful change impossible make violent ones inevitable. How on earth did he think that even a fool would not see through his red herring dressed up in statesmanlike pronouncement? This is hubris of the highest order and I am so disappointed’.

    The respected OODUA PATHFINDER was more scathing in its editorial on the subject.  Paraphrasing the paper, it is of the opinion that Professor Akinyemi  is being clever by half by pretending  he  is ignorant of the nature of the current Nigerian presidency  thereby leading him to suggest that  both parties would  jointly be  responsible for President Jonathan’s anti-democratic actions. Writing further, it said ‘there is only one person to be held responsible for any violence and that is the president. The reason it wrote, is simple because he has never held anyone accountable for any high crimes, even as he himself is an active participant. Violence, it says,  does not occur in a vacuum; so  when  security forces embark on illegalities, hiding under “orders from above,  when state institutions are used to maul the opposition,  it is no rocket science – as the professor himself would say – to know that its purveyors are setting the stage for violence. So, Akinyemi’s warning, the paper concluded, would make sense only if the president had been acting within the Constitution he swore to uphold”.

    This government has committed and has not stopped committing serial illegalities thus confirming the truism that the president really doesn’t care a hoot as he personally once told Nigerians. It harassed and tear-gassed elected representatives of the people, and recently led sundry beneficiaries of its ill-digested economic policies to donate sums of money far in excess of the campaign funds allowed by law. Try go to court to challenge this affront on the citizenry and you see Nigerian courts find in favour of a government that has succeeded in compromising every institution of state.

    Also, rumours already have it that like it happened in the Ekiti election where NYSC members used were trained in far away Akure, those to be deployed in 2015 are already being ‘bent’, preparatory to assist in rigging the election, a situation which, if true, can completely endanger the lives of these young Nigerians. Parents are therefore put on this long notice to warn their children or wards who might be carried away by amounts which to, a 21billion-plus rich PDP will be nothing more than a pittance.

    With some of these illegalities not unknown to Professor Akinyemi, it is a surprise he could opine that the two parties should be held responsible for any election-related crisis. Worse is the fact that though most Nigerians are aware of  PDP’s history of electoral apostasy -apostasy used  here loosely to describe  the party’s serial electoral malfeasance – it accounted for  a self-confessed rigged-in president- the highly regarded professor still found  it difficult to be a honest broker. PDP has graduated far and beyond traditional rigging tactics and had gone scientific as we saw in the Ekiti election. The inability to prove it at the Ekiti Election Tribunal was due to its technicality but I believe that Nigerian lawyers will soon get round it. I have no doubt that its success in Ekiti would spur PDP to its further deployment in the 2015 elections. It is therefore the responsibility, not of a complicit INEC, but of opposition political

    parties to negate that possibility. One would not but wonder what facilities the professor thinks the opposition has to start a crisis knowing how unencumbered the Nigeria police and other security agencies are in turning their offensive weapons on its members. Comparisons can be  odious as what is generally forgotten  when  some misguided people attribute the 2011 post election crises to General Buhari is the fact that his oft-quoted statement  had a  condition precedent which is: IF ELECTIONS ARE RIGGED, there would be crisis.  Last Sunday on this page I mentioned how the first day’s  election was  allegedly cancelled just  to ascertain the general’s area of strength to which fake papers were then allegedly ferried on subsequent  days; something they did successfully because of the general’s lean manpower resources on ground but which today, is no longer the case.

    In concluding, I wish to respectfully say that had Professor Akinyemi, in his letter, laid the requisite and appropriate emphasis on the critical need for a genuinely transparent election, – something ONLY President Jonathan can guarantee, he would have found me standing ramrod behind him.

  • Akwa Ibom guber crisis: Cracks within G22?

    Akwa Ibom guber crisis: Cracks within G22?

    DISAGREEMENT within the group of aggrieved aspirants from Akwa Ibom State that lost the last People’s Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primaries is a major concern in the group which is now known as G22.

    In fact, the group is said to have witnessed some cracks in its ranks because of mutual suspicion, over what a top politician close to one of the former aspirants in the state described as “a strange agenda of few vocal members of the group.”

    It would be recalled that the Presidency stepped in to assuage the discontent created by the outcome of the PDP primary in the state, the result of which 22 aspirants rejected.

    A source said a leading member of the group, who is close to Jonathan is spearheading a peace move which may have seen about 17 members of the aggrieved group ready to accept the result of the primary election and work with the winner Mr. Udom Emmanuel rather than leave the party. This is coming as some women groups, known as NkaUfonIban, have threatened to parade the streets of Uyo naked while 22 Youth groups also threatened to dump PDP if the national leadership of the party annuls the election result that gave victory to Emmanuel.

    The leader of the women group, Obongawan Arit Inyang, disclosed this decision while addressing the group in an emergency meeting which took place in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.  She explained that half nude protests by women is a taboo and represents total rejection. So, the group promises to make sure the ruling party is rejected if the mandate the people gave to Emmanuel is not upheld.

    Also the women group described the recent moves by the aggrieved aspirants popularly known as G22 as misguided and appeal to them to join hands with Mr. Emmanuel to move the party forward in the state.

    The group, whose membership strength is over 310,000 and cuts across the state, not only threatened to go half nude to protest against the ruling party, the PDP, but also to make sure the ruling party is rejected at the polls. The women group described the recent moves by the aggrieved aspirants popularly known as G22 as misguided and appealed to them to join hands with Mr. Emmanuel to move the party forward in the state.

    A source very close to the aggrieved aspirants said PDP is aware that the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the party’s presidential flag bearer, General Mohammadu Buhari, have been making promises to the embittered aspirants. He therefore advised that it is in the interest of PDP to pacify all the aspirants before it is too late.

  • Cross River Senator dumps PDP

    Senator representing the Southern Senatorial District of Cross River State, Prince Bassey Otu has resigned his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    Addressing his supporters at the Margaret Ekpo Airport in Calabar, he said he resigned because he could not identify with a party which does not have the interest of the people at heart.

    He said he was displeased with the way the party had conducted itself.

    Sweet Prince as he is fondly called by his teeming supporters lost the PDP primary election to chairman of the State Water Board Corporation, Mr Gershom Bassey.

    Although he did not say which party he would be heading to, it is strongly believed he has already joined the Labour Party in the state.

    “I want to thank you for the support and prayers I have been enjoying from you. Today you sent me to represent you. My representation in the Senate has been totally about the people and not myself. I am totally displeased with the way the PDP has conducted itself. My objective here is to consult with all of you and in no distant time, we would come out with a decision.

    “As you can see, I am ready to serve further. I don’t think that anybody should rob Cross River South of a ranking senator. I have done one term and I think our people should enjoy more dividends in a second term.

    “As at now I have resigned from the PDP. Any party that is not ready to serve the people, it would be difficult for me to identify with that party. After due consultations, we would come out with a party that would serve our people. For now I will leave you with an adage which says, ‘Let poor man follow chop’”, he said to loud cheers from his supporters.

    Also believed to have left the PDP for the LP are governorship aspirant, Goddy Jedy-Agba, among other top PDP members in the state.

     

     

  • Sheriff is PDP senatorial candidate for Borno Central

    Sheriff is PDP senatorial candidate for Borno Central

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has selected former Governor Modu Sherrif as its Borno Central senato-rial candidate for next year’s election.

    The party explained that Senator Sherrif emerged as a consensus candidate, following consultations among stakeholders.

    He was given the ticket after he was cleared by the Department of State Security Services (DSS) on the allegation sponsoring Boko Haram activities.

    To forge unity in the chapter, the party also resolved to select other candidates through consensus to prevent post-primary crisis.

    Sheriff was absolved of complicity in Boko Haram activities. Also cleared was the former Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Azubuike Ihejirika (rtd).

    During the investigation by security agents, another controversy broke out, when the photograph of Sherrif with President Goodluck Jonathan and Chadian President Idriss Derby in D’Jamena, the Chadian capital, appeared in the social media.

    The pictures provoked debate and condemnation by critics and opposition political parties.The Presidency explained that  Sheriff was not part of Dr. Jonathan’s entourage, adding that he received the visiting President like other Nigerians resident in Chad.

    Last week, the DSS paraded seven suspects, including Junaidu Khadi, former Special Adviser to the former governor, on allegation of conspiracy to frame up his former boss.

    However, Governor Kasim Shettima’s spokesman, Malam Isa Gusau, pointed out that the DSS failed to allude to the fact that Khadi served as a special adviser under Sherrif in 2010.

    He also recalled that the former governor mounted pressure on his successor to re-appoint Khadi as a member of the State Executive Council. Gusau emphasised that Khadi was sacked by the governor before his arrest, adding that he was not working with Shettima when he was arrested.

    Sheriff had earlier endorsed his associate, Alhaji Mohammed Imam, for the Senate, following his failed governorship bid. Imam lost to Alhaji Gambo Lawan during the selection process. While Imam enjoyed the support of the former governor, other PDP leaders preferred Gambo.

    Sheriff had contested for the Senate in 2011 on the platform of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), but he lost to Ahmed Zanna of the PDP,  a relatively unknown politician.

    A source said that Sherrif has promised to get ministerial or ambassadorial position for Imam, if the President gets a second term.

    However, many stakeholders are jittery because of the soaring popularity of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the rising profile of its presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari. In their view, the PDP may not bounce back, if the APC sustains the current tempo of mobilisation across the six geo-political zones.

  • The PDP magic called primaries

    SIR: That the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) appears to be fast losing focus is no longer in dispute. Indeed the media is awash with reports of the legion of self- inflicted vicissitudes that have become the lot of the PDP, which if not properly managed could lead to its defeat in the 2015 elections.

    The biggest challenge the PDP has is its lack of respect for the rudimentary principle of internal democracy. It will appear that the leadership of the party does not believe in internal democracy and does not even pretend about it. From day one that the party started the process for the just concluded primaries, it was clear that respect for internal democracy was not part of the essential ingredients of the process.

    The election of the Ward ad-hoc delegates, in virtually all the states of the federation, was a clear mockery of democracy. It is doubtful that any of the delegates was actually elected. Strong leaders, favoured by the party leadership wrote the list of the delegates and sponsored it through the National Headquarters. The turmoil in the primaries proper was only to be expected.

    A typical sample of where not to emulate the PDP is Imo State. During the Ward ad-hoc delegate congress, those who believed they were strong enough, and favoured by the PDP National leadership successfully shut out Senator Ifeanyi Arararume from having even one delegate, not even in his own Ward. This governorship aspirant therefore went to the governorship primaries

    without one delegate put by him. In spite of this obvious drawback, he remained undaunted, braved all the odds and reached out to the delegates and appealed to their consciences. Election day came on December 8. The Electoral panel announced to the hearing of all present that 1064 delegates had been accredited to vote in the primaries.

    At the end of voting, total votes cast were counted openly and announced as 1017. The counting peaked with Ikedi Ohakim, the third runner up, whose votes were counted and announced as 213. The next was Arararume. His votes were counted and they came to 336. By this time, the votes of 27 aspirants had been counted and it came to 681. The only aspirant left to be counted was Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha. Going by the total valid votes cast and the total votes scored by 27 of the 28 aspirants, that is 681, it became obvious that Arararume had won the primaries. This is so because when you subtract 681 from 1006 valid votes cast, Ihedioha would have scored 325 votes. But the electoral panel, to the chagrin of all, announced 446 votes for him.

    In my view, this is the biggest challenge the PDP is facing and how it is resolved will go a long way in deciding the fate of the party in Imo State. Surprisingly, the National Party leadership has remained mute on this issue, even some of those who have commented on the matter, including a group of Imo PDP Elders, have refused to address the crux of the matter.

    And that crux is: was it 1006 votes that were declared by the electoral panel as votes validly cast? If that is so, and it is because the panel announced that publicly, how come then that after 27 aspirants scored 681 votes, the last aspirant who should have 325 votes now had 346 votes?

    Even while the Imo case is peculiar, the crisis in PDP is widespread. The rumour making the rounds is that a ticket from the flawed primaries is not any guarantee of a PDP flag for 2015 election. Stories abound that the tickets are up for grabs to highest bidders in Abuja. And not a few are wondering why the party ever bothered with having primaries.

    Perhaps the PDP is sitting supine, unmoved, because it is in power and believes it can always fix things. But they must hear this truth; the biggest gain of our 15 years of democracy is that elections are becoming increasingly impossible to rig. Gone are the days when a PDP ticket is automatic victory in the polls.

    • Hon. Declan Mbadiwe Emelumba,

    Owerri, Imo State

  • PDP chief hails delegates on Jonathan’s endorsement

    PDP chief hails delegates on Jonathan’s endorsement

    The leader of the Jonathan Mandate for Justice 2015  (JMJ) and achieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in BauchI State, Mr. Noah Dallaji, has hailed the outcome of the national convention which, he described as a foretaste of victory for President Goodluck Jonathan in next year election.

    In a statement in Bauchi, the state capital,  Dallaji praised the delegates, leaders and members, who attended the convention and their resolve to elect the President. He said Dr. Jonathan will win the election and use the mandate to consolidate on his transformation agenda.

    Dallaji said the convention has confirmed to the world that the PDP  is a democratic  party, which would always conform to its constitution by allowing the wishes of the people to prevail.

    He added: “As a democratic party, the PDP has by the outcome of this convention showed to the world that we are true democrats. The delegates have expressed themselves through their ballots and resolved to give President Goodluck Jonathan the presidential ticket which is a good thing for our collective interest as a people and nation in an era of consolidating our national transformation and we can only thank and praise the delegates for their wise decision. Importantly, we cannot but also praise the leadership of our national chairman, Alhaji Adamu Mua’zu, who has provided good direction, stabilized and united  the party since he came on board.

    “What is important in a democracy is the process which should conform with the ethics of democracy and this was vindicated at this convention because the people made their choice and this should be respected by all as a fundamental objective of democracy. It was a democratic enterprise which further showed the resilience of the  PDP as a political party, the acumen and commitment  of its leaders as well as the good spirit and discipline of our members.”

    Dallaji said the President’s victory would also be reflected in the general election, stressing that the electorate can see beyond the antics of the opposition.

    He added: “What is important to the people now  is how to consolidate on the progress already made across the nation by virtue of the the impact of the transformation agenda of the president and never to go back to the past of unpredictable policy and leadership change.

    “The President’s victory at the convention is a foretaste of what to expect in the 2015 general election because the people will vote massively for Mr. President and that should not surprise the opposition.

    “The opposition will have their say, but they can’t stop the people from voting according to their wishes and aspirations. All they want is continuity of policies and programmes to consolidate on the gains already made through the transformation agenda of this government, which the people can seee as impacting their lives and much more would be done during the president’s second coming.

    “So, it is not about changing policies and leadership  for the sake of it but consolidating on the good work done by the Jonathan Administration which is showing signs of improvement that our nation is getting better, delivering on the challenge of national cohesion and development even as we note that much more still need to be done. We have to be careful of unpredictable policy and leadership change, we certainly need to move forward.”

  • Niger PDP: Ndanusa, two others for deputy governor

    Niger PDP: Ndanusa, two others for deputy governor

    Former Minister of Sports  Sani Ndanusa is among the contenders for the runnning mate to the Niger State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate, Umar Nasko.

    Other contenders are the Secretary to the Government (SSG), Hon. Idris Ndako Kpaki, and the Commissioner for Local Government, Chieftaincy Affairs and Community Development, Alhaji Isah Kantigi.

    The contenders were selected, following consultations and a shadow poll by State Executive Council members, local government chairmen and party leaders.

    Sources said that the search for the running mate was based on an agreement that the party should carry stakeholders on the choice of the running mate.

    The deputy governorship candidate was to have been named last week. But, there was a stiff opposition by some stakeholders, who kicked against one of the contenders perceived as Governor Babangida Aliyu’s annointed candidate.

    Also, a source said that the flag bearer’s family is not favourably disposed to the aspirant.

    Following the objection by stakeholders,  the governor directed that the names of the three contenders should be forwarded to the standard bearer to decide.

    He added:“The governor was in a fix. He had given his word to one of the contenders, but the new turn of events seem not to favour his preferred candidate. So, he has directed that Nasko be given opportunity to pick his deputy.

    “He claimed he was not given a similar opportunity when he came into power in 2007, but would want his successor to start with a deputy of his choice.”

    Efforts to get Nasko to comment on the issue proved abortive. But, a member of his campaign team, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said: “Our principal is being guided by the party on the choice of his deputy. We are going to weigh all the options and come up with the best for the party and the state.”

  • N21b donation raises legal issues for PDP, Jonathan

    N21b donation raises legal issues for PDP, Jonathan

    Ex-NBA chief: Nigerians should monitor spending

    Name donors, says Falana

    Legal issues were raised yesterday over the cash flood unleashed last Saturday by President Goodluck Jonathan’s fans.

    By raising  N21billion campaign fund, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate may have violated the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended).

    The PDP seems to have also breached Section 38 (2) of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA).

    The party’s presidential candidate is limited to only N1billion campaign cash; it has raised more than N21billion.

    The PDP may forfeit N20billion to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) — going by  Section 92(6) of the Electoral Act.

    According to a copy of INEC’s Political Finance Monitoring Manual obtained yesterday, the PDP is in breach of Section 221 of the 1999 Constitution, Sections 91, 92 and 93 of the Electoral Act and Section 38(2) of CAMA.

    But a lawyer stressed that the party will be breaching the law only if it is discovered that its spending is against the law.

    INEC officials declined comments on the matter. One simply said: “It (the manual) is explicit enough for you to know if there was violation or not.”

    The source said: “We do not want to be distracted at all over campaign funds because all parties are in receipt of the Political Finance Monitoring Manual. If we join issues with any party or group, we will be accused of bias.

    “But, ideally, a presidential candidate is limited to N1billion campaign fund and if it is more than the ceiling, you can make your deductions on the legality or otherwise of such a venture.

    “If they have breached it, they know. Any concerned Nigerian or group can challenge such violation legally. It is not within our purview to do so.

    “There are even provisions for sanctions if any party or individual breaches the relevant provisions in the Electoral Act.”

    Responding to a question, the source said: “If you go through the manual, it has quoted Section 92(6) of the Electoral Act as saying that any party that incurs election expenses beyond the limit stipulated is guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a maximum fine of N1m and forfeiture to INEC the amount by which the expenses exceed the limit set by the commission.”

    The manual made references to Section 90(1) and Section 91(1-10) on campaign funds and accruable sanctions if there is any violation.

    The sections states: “The Commission shall have power to place limitation on the amount of money or other assets, which an individual or group of persons can contribute to a political party.

    “Election expenses shall not exceed the sum stipulated in subsection (2-7) of this section.

    “The maximum election expenses to be incurred by a candidate at a Presidential election shall be N1billion.

    “The maximum election expenses to be incurred by a candidate at a Governorship election shall be N200, 000.000.

    “The maximum amount of election expenses to be incurred of senatorial seat by a candidate at an election to the National Assembly shall be N40, 000.000 while the seat for House of Representative shall be N20, 000.000.

    “In the case of State Assembly election, the maximum amount of election expenses to be incurred shall be N10, 000.000.

    “In the case of chairmanship election to an Area Council, the maximum amount of election expenses to be incurred shall be N10, 000.000

    “In the case of councillorship election to an Area Council, the maximum amount of election expenses to be incurred shall be N1, 000.000.”

    The INEC manual has also stipulated sanctions for candidates who breach the Electoral Act.

    Going by to the Act, President Jonathan risks a 12-month imprisonment for exceeding the campaign fund limit.

    Section 91 of the Electoral Act says: “A candidate who knowingly acts in contravention of this section commits an offence and on conviction is liable:

    “In the case of presidential election to a maximum fine of N1, 000,000.00 or imprisonment of 12 months or both.

    “In the case of a governorship election to a fine of N800, 000.00 or imprisonment for nine months or both.

    “In the case of Senatorial seat in the National assembly election to the fine of N600, 000.00 or imprisonment for 6 months or both.

    “In the case of House of Representative seat in the National Assembly election to a fine of N500, 000.00 or imprisonment for 5 months or both.

    “In the case of State House of Assembly election to a fine of N300,000.00 or 3 months imprisonment or both.

    “In the case of chairmanship election to a fine of N300, 000.00 or three months imprisonment or both.

    “In the case of the councillorship election to a fine of N100, 000.00 or one month imprisonment or both.”

    On donations by companies, the INEC manual also indicated that such firms will be violating Section 221 of the 1999 Constitution and Section 38 (2) of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) which has prohibited corporate bodies from making contributions to political parties.

    Section 221 reads: “No association, other than a political party, shall canvass for votes for any candidate at any election or contribute to the funds of any political party or to the election expenses of any candidate at an election.

    Section 38(2) of CAMA says: “A company shall not have or exercise power either directly or indirectly to make a donation or gift of any of its property or funds to a political party or political association or for any political purpose; and if any company, in breach of this subsection makes any donation or gift of its property to a political party or political association, or for any political purpose, the officers in default and any member who voted for the breach shall be jointly and severally liable to refund to the company the sum or value of the donation or gift and in addition, the company and every such officer or member shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine equal to the amount or value of the donation or gift.”

    The manual said even if a company is not prohibited by the Constitution or CAMA from making donations, it will be subject to the limits in the Electoral Act or regulations made.

    The manual reads in part: “Section 38(1) of CAMA vests every company with the powers of a natural person of full capacity, except if it is restrained by limitations imposed by the company’s memorandum or any other enactment.

    “On the basis of this subsection, even if a company is not prohibited by the Constitution or CAMA from making donations to political parties, it will still be subject to the limits of individual donations in the Electoral Act or regulations made by INEC.”

    Lagos lawyer Femi Falana (SAN) yesterday asked INEC to be courageous enough to prosecute all those who breached the Electoral Act on election expenses.

    The lawyer decried the monetisation of the political process anf urged INEC to rise up to the occasion by compelling political parties to name all faceless donors and prosecute all those that have breached the Electoral Act on election expenses.

    Also yesterday, a former Minister of Petroleum, Prof. Tam David-West, described the N21 billion described President Goodluck Jonathan’s campaign as the “mother of all corruption”.

    David-West said the development was another evidence that Jonathan cannot  fight corruption.

    Expressing shock at the fund raising, the former minister urged the President to either return the money to the donors or to the Federation Account to help millions of unemployed Nigerians.

    He said: “The donation and President Jonathan’s failure to distance himself from his comparison to Jesus Christ disqualify him from running as president.

    “His media aide, Dr Doyin Okupe, compared him with Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour and Jonathan, who claims to be a Christian, did not dissociate himself from that blasphemy. In fact, he failed in the election the day Okupe compared him with Christ.

    “President Jonathan should be reminded that when the Beatles at the height of their fame compared themselves to Jesus Christ, the band completely collapsed. The same will happen to Jonathan.

    “Corruption is the greatest problem that sets Nigeria backward. So a president that can accept N21 billion disqualifies himself from being president of Nigeria.

    “For avoidance of confusion, Prof. Clapham defined corruption as the use of public office for private goals.”